Making Up for Lost Time, or Reviewing Some Stuff I’ve Seen Recently

Yeah, I’ve been busy with work related stuff that finding the time to make videos and new blog posts is getting a bit difficult. But, let’s just get this moving.

Cars 3

Yeah I saw Cars 3 (and never even bothered with Cars 2, they don’t even reference it once). It was pretty alright.

Pixar has the gorgeous animation nailed as always and the whole story is a definite return to basics, while also being a fitting tribute to the late Paul Newman and his character of Doc Hudson from the first film.

There’s not a whole lot more to say. Some decent comedy (with Mater’s screentime dialed down massively) and the lead female character of Cruz Ramirez was actually pretty entertaining.

Halo Legends

Halo’s foray into anime is a solid one if nothing else. It’s a collection of 7 short films from the Halo universe (with only one short, fitting titled ‘Odd One Out’ being officially non-canon). And they’re all consistently good. For most anthology films, that feels like a rare thing to have (see Genius Party and its terrible 5th short Limit Cycle).

From Cortana detailing the origins of the Flood and the Forerunners to a clumsy SPARTAN soldier fumbling around while battling dinosaurs. There’s plenty to behold. The production values of each short are all solid too, from ‘Duel’s’ unique CG and dirty look to ‘Odd One Out’s’ Dragon Ball type fights, though this is on surprise coming from the director Daisuke Nishio (who series directed Dragon Ball and DBZ).

I suppose my only nitpick being the changed voice cast from the games, with David Wald and Shelley Calene-Black filling in for Steve Downes and Jen Taylor as the Master Chief and Cortana. They still do a fine job and credit where credit’s due for voicing them across every short they make an appearance in.

Baby Driver

Edgar Wright will always be one of my favourite directors. From his Cornetto Trilogy to Scott Pilgrim vs the World or even his amazing tv series Spaced, he has always made something amazing.

Baby Driver is no different. The catchy soundtrack, insanely good editing and well shot action help to compliment an already entertaining story of a getaway driver falling in love and trying to get out from that life. Every performance is fantastic and the little details and foreshadowing are so good, I didn’t even catch them till I looked online later.

If you’re not sucked in by the opening sequence of either the first car chase or our main lead Baby singing and dancing his way to and from a coffee shop in one continuous take, then I don’t know what to tell you.

Spiderman Homecoming

Spidey’s really back for good now. I’m really happy to say that.

Ever since his introduction to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Captain America: Civil War, Tom Holland’s Spiderman/Peter Parker has been hotly debated in comparison with his predecessors of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. Of course to me, each actor has brought something to each portrayal of the character so it’s no big deal for me.

Sam Raimi’s Spiderman trilogy will always be great cheesy fun, with the first film being especially impactful on my young life. The second and third films not so much. I know people put the second film on a high pedestal but I couldn’t really get into its plot/drama and found the whole ‘Spidey losing his powers’ plot really hard to swallow no matter how fans tried to explain it.

The Amazing Spiderman films were alright but were a constant mixed bag of bad ideas, forced plotlines and a charmingly done relationship between Peter and Gwen (which made what they did with her in ASM2 one of my most hated things about that movie).

By comparison Homecoming opts to jump into new territory with no doubts or hesitation. We don’t see the famed spider bite nor Uncle Ben’s death. We’ve seen that all already and the filmmakers know this. Instead it’s a mashup of simple superhero film and a coming of age high school story where the homecoming dance is inevitably at the climax.

The MCU feels more alive and real than ever here especially from Damage Control finally making their debut to the motives of the Vulture (played wonderfully by Michael Keaton) being so intrinsically tied to the aftermath of the first Avengers battle and the cleanup involved. Not to mention offhand references to the Sokovia Accords or Captain America’s instructional videos.

But at its heart, Spiderman Homecoming is still about the struggles of being a hero, doing the right thing and sometimes having to give some things up just to achieve your goals. Always has that been at Peter Parker’s struggles as he tries his hardest to be a hero and endear himself to Tony Stark so he can become an Avenger.

And for that Spiderman Homecoming succeeds with flying colours. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for the sequels and everything they teased.

Also be sure to stay for both after-credits scenes, the last one is especially amazing and worth the wait.

So yeah that about does it for now. Hope you enjoyed my opinions, or not. I don’t really care. See you all whenever.

Published by JRPictures

Just some anime nerd and moviebuff who loves dubs and spends his time consuming way too much fiction. I may also have an evil doppelgänger who plans for world domination...
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